If you believe the Federal Government and most economists, the recession is over and the economy is expanding again. They'll tell you that:

• GDP growth is expected to be 2.6 per cent in 2010. The Canadian government did not need to inject nearly as much stimulus as the U.S. or European countries had to. As a result, there is not the same level of pressure on either the Bank of Canada to tighten credit conditions or for the government to raise taxes.

• Infrastructure spending should continue throughout 2010. Transportation, clean transit, clean energy, education, health care, information technology, and other building blocks that are now being put in place will be needed in the years ahead. The signing of the $6 billion agreement between the Province of Ontario and Samsung to create a clean energy hub in the manufacturing heartland of Southwestern Ontario is a prime example of the type of economic development that will be required.

• The Canadian financial sector has managed to weather the credit crisis without major trouble. Canadian banks and insurers are seen as the best managed in the world and could be poised to make further inroads in international markets once new international banking standards are codified.

• The U.S. needs a secure source of foreign oil to replace declining domestic production. The developing world, especially China, will require more oil, coal, and uranium. Canada is an exporter of all of these resources. Even with the environmental challenges, there is little doubt that development will continue.

• The mining industry, fueled by higher commodity prices, is expanding. Although there are many legitimate issues to be worked out regarding northern development and the First Nations, there is the potential that development will be of tremendous benefit to eliminating the Third World conditions that exist in many reserves.

This all sounds like great news. Unfortunately, it doesn't mean very much to most Canadians. For them, the recession is far from over. If a human indicators index was used rather then one that measures just goods and services, it is doubtful that the recession would be legitimately considered over. It could well be that the economy will grow while social conditions continue to deteriorate.

Unions, workers, and the recently unemployed will tell you:

• Canadian unemployment remains at 8.5 per cent.

• Between the second quarter of 2008 and the third quarter of 2009, real per capita income fell 9 per cent as high-wage jobs have been eliminated and many existing workers have been forced to make considerable concessions to retain their jobs.

• Even with the layoffs and concessions, worker productivity declined 4.5 per cent.

For many former, present, and future plant workers, high-wage jobs, secure pensions, and rich benefit packages are but a memory. The impact on many communities has been severe. Many actions that governments could have taken to lessen the blow to workers, their families, and their communities (EI reform, welfare reform, pension reform, affordable housing) were not implemented.

The human cost of the economic contraction may well lead to the permanent lowering of the standard of living for many, if not most, Canadians. There is real concern that many formerly well paying jobs have been exported and permanently lost.

However, the foundation for Canadian renewal is in place. If global recovery takes hold, the Canadian economy appears to be well positioned to grow at a higher rate than the rest of the OECD because the structural economic damage here has been less severe. Growth in emerging markets, especially China, benefits commodity producers like Canada that supply the resources the developing world requires as their burgeoning middle classes demand consumer goods. Whether or not this will translate into higher wages and a higher standard of living for the Canadian middle class, only time will tell.